Copyright protection is automatic and provides authors with a set of exclusive rights in the works they create. As a result, rightsholders may choose to tightly control the use of their works through individually negotiated licenses, which may also involve a license fee. Alternatively, when a rightsholder selects an open license for their work, they are communicating to the public the terms under which their work may be used without the need to negotiate individual permission.

Creative Commons is "a global nonprofit organization that enables sharing and reuse of creativity and knowledge through the provision of free legal tools". Creative Commons provides a number of different open licenses that rightsholders may select for their works. When a work is made available under a Creative Commons license, any user in the world has permission to use the work, for free, so long as they follow the terms of the license.

What is Creative Commons? by Victor Grigas (Wikimedia Foundation) is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported

Creative Commons offers 6 different licenses using a combination of 4 different license terms:

• Attribution (BY): users provide appropriate credit, link to the license, and note changes made. Attribution is required by default for all CC licenses.
• NonCommercial (NC): users may not use the work for commercial purposes (a use primarily intended for commercial advantage or monetary compensation).
• NoDerivatives (ND): users who create an adaptation of the work may not share the adaptation.
• ShareAlike (SA): users who create and share adaptations of the work must share their adaptations under the same or compatible license.

These terms combine to form six licenses:

     Attribution (CC BY)

     Attribution-ShareAlike (CC BY-SA)

     Attribution-NonCommercial (CC BY-NC)

     Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike (CC BY-NC-SA)

     Attribution-NoDerivatives (CC BY-ND)

     Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives (CC BY-NC-ND)

More information:

• Creative Commons website
• About CC Licenses: A description of all 6 Creative Commons licenses with an overview of license terms
• Creative Commons: Frequently Asked Questions
• More information on Creative Commons from Copyright Services

By default, all Creative Commons license require the user to provide attribution. 

Attribution must include:

• Name of creator
• Creative Commons license notice
• A link to material
• Indication of modifications made (if applicable)

The following items must also be included, if supplied:

• Title 
• Copyright notice 
• Disclaimer notice

Example:

"Renewed Reading Room" by Brian Hoffsis is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

More information:

• Creative Commons: Best Practices for Attribution
• Creative Commons Attribution Guide from Copyright Services

Only copyright owners or those authorized by the copyright owner may select a Creative Commons license for their creative work. Faculty, staff, and students at OSU should be sure to refer to the OSU Intellectual Property Policy for more information on ownership of materials (more information on author rights can be found on this guide) when considering an open license.

Creative Commons licenses are irrevocable, so licensors should read and understand license terms fully before selecting a Creative Commons license for their work. Any part of a work that is not covered by the CC license should be clearly marked.

If you decide to apply a CC license to your work, the Creative Commons license chooser can guide you through your license options and generate the appropriate identifying license button and machine-readable code for your work.

More information:

• Creative Commons Wiki: Considerations for Licensors
• Creative Commons FAQ: How do I apply a Creative Commons license to my material?